Robbinsdale Armstrong shutout against Minnetonka, 24-0

Robbinsdale Armstrong football coach Ryan Bartlett saw a noticeable difference between his team’s play during Friday’s 24-0 loss at home to Minnetonka. It lacked a certain intensity present during the Falcons’ season-opening win at Maple Grove.

“I just thought our team didn’t have any urgency, no giddy-up like we did last week,” he said. “Minnetonka had a lot to do with that, too. They’re a very good team. But we need to have more urgency about ourselves when we play.”

The Falcons (1-1, 1-0 Northwest Suburban Conference) ran into a red-hot Minnetonka squad on Friday, one that has outscored its opponents 52-0 in two games this season and handed Totino-Grace its first home loss in six years a week ago. 

But that’s no excuse for Bartlett, who said the biggest challenge on Friday was not handling the Skippers’ monster defensive line—which averages 245 pounds across the board and peaks with nose guard Josh Anderson at 295—or its blazing speed in the secondary.

It was Armstrong’s own play that made the difference.

“We’ve got to push as coaches in practice, and believe me we will,” Bartlett said. “We can fix that.”

Armstrong trailed 10-0 in the third quarter and kept the game close until the Skippers (2-0) connected for a 15-yard touchdown pass with 6:45 remaining in the quarter. 

The Falcons moved the ball minutes later and drove inside the 10-yardline with hopes of cutting the lead to 10. But the Skippers stopped Armstrong on a fourth-and-2 attempt from the 6-yardline, and Armstrong never threatened again.

The Falcons’ next game is at Centennial next Friday, and Bartlett will be looking for his team to rebound with more pressure on the opposing team’s defense.

“I don’t think we ever put them in a spot where they were worried or on their heels,” Bartlett said. “They’re not that good where we shouldn’t be able to get a first down here or there.”